Betrayal
by Sarana Ishtar
Summary: Bekka had been told that Kalin was dead. Now she knows that he's alive, and she will do whatever it takes to reunite with him...one-shot, may be expanded later. Takes place after Yusei and Kalin's first duel.


So a while back, I was watching the 5D's anime and playing Reverse of Arcadia on my DS, which inspired me to write this one-shot. There's a much longer and more detailed version, that covers more of the Dark Signer arc, that's in the process of being written, but don't hold your breath waiting for it...in the meantime, enjoy this sneak peekamahickeydoothingamajig!

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"What was that the MC started calling you? 'Satellite's Shooting Star'? More like 'Satellite's _Falling_ Star!'" Dark Signer Kalin mocked, "See you around, Yusei." He revved up his Runner and sped off, leaving Yusei crumpled on the ground.

"Yusei!" I screamed, "Hold on, I'm coming!" I slid down the hill on my own Runner and swerved to avoid running him over. I quickly dismounted and was at his side. He was curled up, shaking, and I saw a metal shard embedded in his abdomen.

"Oh please no," I whispered, tears blurring my visions. I reached out and touched his face. It was soaked with sweat from his helmet and from the stress of his turbo duel with Kalin.

"Yusei!" I heard Rally cry out. He and the rest of Yusei's friend were rushing toward him. Carefully, they turned him onto his back – making him grunt in agony – and exposing the jagged metal in his flesh.

I bit my lip as they cried out in horror, a jumble of mixed up emotions in me. Kalin – _Kalin_, the one who had taken me in as an Enforcer, who had inspired me to follow my dreams – had done this to his own best friend.

"Don't touch him!" Crow shouted, coming down on his own Duel Runner. "We gotta get him to Martha's and fast." With some effort, Nirvin picked up Yusei as gently as he could and slung him behind Crow over the Blackbird. Crow looked back at me. "Coming?" he asked.

I pulled my helmet over my head, lowered the visor, and walked back to my Duel Runner. But, when I started the engine, I turned the bike in the opposite direction.

"What are you doing!?" Crow demanded.

I looked back at him with blazing eyes. "Maybe you didn't notice, but that's _Kalin_ speeding off. Our friend, Crow! He's alive!"

"Yeah, and this is also _our friend_, presumably dying!" Crow shot back, pointing at Yusei. "And obviously, Kalin wants nothing less than our annihilation right now! I wouldn't count him as a friend anymore!"

"I don't care," I said, twisting the handlebar.

"Bekka, you saw what that duel just did to Yusei. You won't stand a chance against Kalin, you're not even a Signer!"

"Crow! Don't you get it!?" I screamed, "I was told that Kalin was _dead_, all those years ago! Now I know he's alive, and nothing will stop me from finding him again, even if he _is_ a Dark Signer!" With that, the FireStar shot forward like a bullet, and whatever Crow was about to say was lost in the whistling wind.

Again and again, the words rolled through my mind:

Kalin's alive.

_Kalin's alive._

_KALIN'S ALIVE!_

I wanted to shout joyfully, but of course now was not the time. Kalin may have miraculously returned from the dead, but he was changed.

It didn't matter. I would find him again, and I would right every wrong that he felt had been committed against him. I could end Yusei's guilt. Everything would be right again, just as it was before the events that had torn the Enforcers apart.

"Well, well," a voice said around me, "looks like I have a follower . . ."

"Kalin?" I asked hopefully, slowing down my Runner but not fully stopping.

The terrifyingly maniacal laughter echoed through the vast emptiness. "Bekka! I guess I didn't see you earlier! What a pleasant surprise!" The navy blue Duel Runner with the orange patterns pulled up beside me, seemingly out of nowhere. Kalin's amber irises, surrounded by the horrible dark sclera, stared at me through his helmet, and a feral grin curved his mouth. "That's _two_ traitors I can take out! Today must be my lucky day!" He laughed again, and the horrifying sound sent chills down my spine.

This was not the Kalin that I knew. He was determined, yes, but he was determined to destroy me, of that I was certain.

"Kalin . . . what happened to you?" I asked.

"I take it you missed out on my reunion with Yusei, or you would already know," he answered, "You _know_ how much I _hate_ repeating myself."

"Stop fooling around, Kalin!" I shouted, "Who did this to you!?"

"Looks like little Bekka is getting all _righteous_ again," he mocked, "You gonna challenge them to a turf war, show off your stuff?"

"Answer me, Kalin!"

"Okay, _fine_. I became a Dark Signer because of a certain someone who offered me the wonderful chance of getting the revenge I should have had while I was alive." Kalin's grin grew wider, and his eyes narrowed.

I almost jammed my Duel Runner to a halt. "You don't mean -"

"That's right, little Bekka, I'm _dead_," he said, "What? Does that _bother_ you?"

So he _was _dead? Then how - I decided I didn't want to think about that. "Revenge on whom? For what?"

When Kalin laughed again, it started low, and grew into a cackle laced with bitterness. "Why, my dear little Enforcer, I wanted to exact my revenge on Yusei, of course . . . and on _you_."

This time, I did slam the brakes. Kalin stopped a few yards ahead of me and dismounted. I also got off my bike and stood there, stunned, trying to comprehend what I heard.

"But . . . it was Yusei you hated,' I said slowly, "You thought he sold you out. . ."

"I didn't think anything, I saw the truth for myself!" Kalin snapped at me, "And yes, that was more painful than you could ever possibly understand. But, just when I thought I couldn't be possibly brought any lower than my _best friend_ could bring me, you know what else I see?"

I shook my head. Kalin came toward me, and hatred was distorting his face until it was nearly unrecognizable. I tried to back away, but the FireStar impeded me. Kalin closed the distance between us and gripped my upper arms.

"I see you – you, who I had taken in, and cared for more than any other person on earth – running to _his_ side!" Kalin hissed into my face. "At the moment where I needed you the most, you turned your back on me. You probably helped Yusei set me up!" he shoved me to one side, and I staggered but avoided falling. My mind continued to spin, trying to remember that darkest of days.

Then I did remember.

"I thought Yusei was getting arrested!" I said wildly, "I wanted to stop Securities from getting their hands on him!"

"That's right, _him_, instead of _me_!" Hatred laced his voice.

"I didn't realize that you were there! I thought you were still inside -"

"Where I wouldn't see you betray me!" he seethed. "The truth was plain for anyone to see: you chose him, just like you choose him now."

"What are you talking about!? I never had anything to do with him!"

"And yet here you are, to avenge what I did to him!" Kalin cackled again. "Face it, Bekka: you wouldn't fool a child with those lies of yours, let alone me."

His cold rejection struck me numb. I stood there, shaking, while every part of my being cried out, yearning for him to understand. Another part of me realized that his memories must have been twisted by whoever had changed him into this monster. No matter what I told him, it would not change his perspective on that scene.

Suddenly, instinct drove me to do the craziest thing. I came toward Kalin, holding his dark gaze steadily, and then I put my arms around him and held on. He stiffened and tried to back away, but I held on, letting all of my pain and my love pour into him through that embrace.

"What are you doing!?" he demanded.

"If you won't believe me," I murmured, "Then please find it somewhere in your heart to forgive me. I would go back and change the past if I could, at least believe that. I would change it so that you never went to that awful Facility, and we would never lose each other. There wouldn't be any more pain. Satellite would still be united, just as you always wanted." My hands tightened on his shirt. "But try as I might, I can't go back and regain all that lost time for us. So please, Kalin, forgive me, and we can move on." I scrunched my eyes shut. If anything, he would kill me and Yusei would free his spirit to follow me into the afterlife.

What happened instead surprised me.

After what seemed like an eternity, Kalin's arms wound around me protectively and tightly, exactly as he did when we were Enforcers. His lips brushed the top of my head.

"I can't forgive you," he breathed in my ear, "but I can start over."

That did it for me. I burst into tears and buried my face in his chest.

"Shh, Bekka, it's okay," he murmured, pulling me closer. His hand came and gripped my chin lightly, directing my face at his. He leaned down and allowed our lips to meet. I eagerly met him, gripping him even tighter. Maybe I could save him from being a Dark Signer after all!

Wait. There was something . . . different in the way he kissed me. It was much more forceful, making me focus completely on it. Not like before, when his kisses were determined, yes, but still tender and loving. There was nothing loving in this, no emotion, only motion.

But because I was so distracted, I missed what he was doing until it was too late.

His hand, which had been holding my chin, had moved back to presumably stroke my hair, but it burrowed past the sweaty locks, seeking my neck. When it found what it sought, his hand grabbed the back of my neck and pinched.

The last thing I remembered was collapsing into his arms, and hearing his horrible laugh again.

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So that's that! Leave a review or a favorite, and tell me what you think!


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